Amazon has not disclosed sales figures for Echo, but the device appears to be having success in the market due, in part, to beating rivals out of the starting gate.

Google Home coming

Google last month unveiled a virtual home assistant device that will challenge Amazon Echo as the Internet giant laid out a future rich with artificial intelligence.

Google Home, about the size of a stout vase, will hit the market later this year, vice president of product management Mario Queiroz said at the opening of the Internet giant’s annual developers conference.

“Our ability to do conversational understanding is far ahead of what other virtual assistants can do,” Pichai told a packed audience at the conference.

“We are an order of magnitude ahead of everyone else.”

Home devices combine machine learning, online search, voice recognition and more to allow people to get answers to questions, manage tasks, or control devices by speaking naturally, demonstrations showed.

Home will synch with Chromecast devices that allow remote control of televisions or stereo systems, and with “smart” devices made by Google-owned Nest and other companies.

Google did not disclose pricing on Home devices.

“Google Home could be a major force and could also dramatically decrease the sales potential of Amazon Echo,” said analyst Patrick Moorhead of Moor Insights and Strategy.

Apple is expected to enter the market with a home assistant device of its own, perhaps unveiled at its annual developers conference taking place later this month in San Francisco, according to rumours swirling ahead of the event. — AFP